[EmpireWF]

Rich Franklin (22-3) was forced to pull out of a scheduled fight with Travis Lutter (12-4) in March due to an injury. Franklin has had MCL knee surgery and won't be able to fight in March.

However, The Fight Network reports Franklin is looking to return to the Octagon in April when the UFC heads up to Montreal, Canada.

Both Franklin and Lutter are coming off of losses to UFC Middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

[EmpireWF]

Dave Meltzer of Yahoo! Sports & The Wrestling Observer posted the following about Franklin earlier tonight...

--Rich Franklin's father passed away suddenly last night due to a heart attack. According to a report by The Fight Network, Franklin, who underwent knee surgery recently, had just agreed to face Travis Lutter on the 4/19 show in Montreal (it was scheduled for 3/1 in Columbus, OH as the semi-main before Franklin's knee went out). At this point, due to the family tragedy, it's unknown the status of that fight.